The Nagorno Karabakh Committee for the Defense of the Fundamental Rights of the Artsakh People has issued a direct appeal to diplomats accredited in Azerbaijan, urging them to stop participating in state-sponsored tours of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Committee warns that these official visits serve as an international whitewash for Azerbaijan’s September 2023 military assault, which resulted in the forced displacement of roughly 150,000 indigenous Armenians. By posing for photos in empty towns and churches stripped of their congregations, visiting diplomats are effectively projecting a facade of normalcy over a severe humanitarian catastrophe.
The letter sharply criticizes participating diplomats for remaining silent on critical human rights violations occurring alongside these visits. While attending carefully curated tours in depopulated areas, the international diplomatic corps has failed to address the ongoing detention and sham trials of Armenian prisoners of war, civilian hostages, and political figures held in Azerbaijan. Furthermore, the statement highlights Azerbaijan’s systematic campaign to erase Armenian historical identity—citing the destruction of churches in Stepanakert, the desecration of the Shushi cemetery, and the historical revisionism surrounding sites like the Gandzasar monastery, all in direct violation of International Court of Justice provisional measures.
In response, the Committee calls on members of the diplomatic corps to demonstrate moral courage and independent judgment. They demand that diplomats decline state-guided visits that legitimize ethnic cleansing, publicly condemn the destruction of cultural heritage, and reject attempts to rewrite the region’s history. Instead, diplomats are urged to demand unhindered access for independent monitors like UNESCO and actively support the rights of displaced Armenians to a safe, dignified, and voluntary return to their homeland.
Find the Full Open Letter Bellow.
